Faster Forward: February 27, 2011 - March 5, 2011

Four years ago, I upset a few readers when I declared in a blog post that I would no longer help them use Microsoft's already obsolete Internet Explorer 6 browser. IE 6 was too insecure, too slow, too clumsy and just too stupid for me to support, I wrote. The...

In Rob's column this week, he looks at the best ways to evaluate the many, many rumors that circulate about technology and gadgetry. Whether it's the latest tidbit about a much-anticipated gadget or game, a whisper about a new release date or the whiff of a tech-related scandal, the tech-obsessed among us are frantic to get the latest snippet of "news."

A Friday report from Bloomberg suggests that Microsoft will not launch a tablet version of Windows until the late summer or early fall of 2012. The report builds off a few Windows 8 and tablet rumors that have been building past weeks. Late last month, ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley published...

Industry analysis firm Gartner has lowered its PC unit forecasts for the next two years, citing expectations of weaker demand for laptops and other mobile consumer PCs. The firm downgraded its predictions for mobile PC shipment growth to 10.5 percent from 15.9 percent in 2011, and to 13.6 percent down from 14.8 percent growth in 2012.

In a keynote speech at the Game Developers Conference on Tuesday, Nintendo announced that it will bring the streaming video service Netflix to the 3DS handheld gaming system this summer. Netflix users can stream Netflix over a wireless connection, much as the service works on the Wii."Nintendo 3DS will be...

AT&T confirmed to CNET on Wednesday that it will be offering the iPhone hotspot feature built into the latest version of iOS to its users after Apple announced that iOS 4.3 will be available for download on March 11

SAN FRANCISCO -- I wrapped up a busy day here Wednesday by stopping by Twitter's offices, all of two blocks from the stage occupied by Apple earlier at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. I wanted to ask the management about a few issues I've been curious about and...

SAN FRANCISCO -- After Wednesday morning's unveiling of the iPad 2, Apple invited attendees to try out the hardware up close for the next hour or so. I only needed a minute to confirm one of Apple's claims: Yes, it's thin. At .34 inches, it makes a MacBook Air look...

Speculation is half the fun of a new product launch, and there's been plenty of it in advance of Apple's big iPad 2 announcement today. Here's a roundup of latest rumors the morning of the announcement.

Google has issued a statement saying that it has successfully restored all data from its tapes and is processing the information. Google spokeswoman Jessica Kositz said access should be restored to most users in a matter of hours, and the best thing for those still waiting for access is to keep checking Google's status dashboards.

Last week's introduction by Apple of its updated line of MacBook Pro laptops might not have drawn as much attention as it did without a new ingredient: a high-speed, multipurpose port called Thunderbolt. From Apple's description of Thunderbolt----developed by Intel under the name Light Peak--as "the fastest, most versatile I/O...

Holt, a five-time Jeopardy winner and nuclear physicist, was the only member to beat Watson in a round of the game, earning $8,600 to Watson's $6,200. Overall, Watson pulled in $40,300 to the members' $30,000.

Former Apple management employee Paul Devine has pleaded guilty to wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy charges. According to Bloomberg, Devine will also forfeit $2.28 million. Devine admitted that he was involved in a conspiracy against Apple from 2005 to 2010 that provided corporate information to suppliers in Asia. He...

Time to learn a new acronym. NFC, or near-field communications, is popping up on the lips of some of the tech industry's top players and it likely won't be long before consumers see it in their favorite products.

T-Mobile surprised almost nobody by quietly moving to sideline the Sidekick, the formerly innovative line of phones it launched back in 2002 -- and which can rightly be regarded as Android's evolutionary ancestor. The Sidekick's life will end May 31, when T-Mobile plans to shut down the over-the-air service that...

Nintendo's new handheld, the 3DS doesn't hit stores in the U.S. until March 27. But it's already been released, sold out and hacked over in Japan. Numerous reports out of Japan say that the mobile gaming unit has already mostly sold out the 400,000 units Nintendo originally shipped in Japan,...

This happens every winter: The Academy Awards air, reminding me of the movies I'd meant to see but somehow didn't get around to. But this time around, the Oscar effect was worse than usual, as my ongoing adventure in parenthood has prevented me from doing my part to prop up...

(Photo used with permission from 9 to 5 Mac) Apple's iPad 2 launch is set (at least, as an open secret) for Wednesday and everyone is speculating about what new features the device might have. Over at 9 to 5 Mac, they have evidence of a modification that few...

There's a lot of confusion about the care and feeding of laptop batteries, to judge from my latest Web chat: Should you avoid running on battery to prolong its life--or rely on the battery as much as possible to keep it fresh? The answer is neither: As long as you...